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WataMote Chapter 028
私がモテないのはどう考えてもお前らが悪い! Watashi ga Motenai no wa dō Kangaetemo Omaera ga Warui! No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys' Fault I’m Not Popular! Synopsis During a break in class, Tomoko rises to use the bathroom. At the doorway, two boys ask her to deliver a simple message to Kiyota. She can only stand behind him struggling on how to get his attention. He notices her, asks her if she needs something, and Tomoko stammers and points in the direction of the two boys. In her room hugging her purple stuffed toy, Tomoko wonders when she developed her inability to talk to people. She believes she was able to do so when she was in fourth grade, and she worries what will happen if she does not change. Just then an interview with Alice, Shinjuku's "Number One Hostess," appears on her television. Alice claims that she used to be very shy in the past, but over time as a hostess, she learned to "have fun" talking to people. Tomoko concludes that becoming a hostess will help her with her social anxiety. As she lets her imagination run, she notes the dangers, based on anime, but feels if she can handle it, she can become a regular high schooler during the day and the most famous hostess during the night! Tomoko emerges from her daydream to wonder how one becomes a hostess: is there an entrance exam that involves lighting cigarettes and pouring drinks? The following day she purchases a cheap lighter and practices lighting it while sitting on a park bench. A man sits near her fumbling for his cigarettes. Anxious, she struggles to light the lighter while the man lights his own cigarette. Later, another man sits and pulls out a cigarette. More prepared, Tomoko lights her lighter. At home, her brother prepares a cup of coffee. As he turns to find a spoon, she adds ice to his drink. In class, she smugly daydreams over her "mastery" of cigarette lighting and drink pouring. Inwardly she looks down at Akane Okada and Kiyota. She declares herself a "badass," and club activities are "too normal for her." Confident and carrying a brochure, she takes the train to Shinjuku, which she has never visited before. She looks at the Kabukichō district and feels a bit overwhelmed. As her anxiety grows, she tries to reassure herself that she is, after all, "not a regular high school girl." She sees a well-dressed young man trying to stop young women to offer them "modeling jobs." He faces her, she stands still, and he walks right past her to accost another young woman. She then overhears seedier looking man try to offer DVDs, "in the back," to another man who ignores him. Tomoko wonders if they are the type of DVDs the police seize. She decides to retreat to the main street, "for a little bit," but declares the area "too weird" for her. Her ringing phone shocks her. Her mother asks her if she will be home for dinner. Shaking, Tomoko promises to be home soon. Again sitting on the bench in the park, Tomoko adds marshmallows to her hot drink like she practiced adding ice. A man sitting next to another man on a nearby bench asks for a light, but the other does not smoke. Tomoko slyly leaves her lighter on the bench and walks away. As the man exclaims he is "lucky" to find a lighter, Tomoko decides she will be a bit more of a "normal person" as the narration declares, "She's gracefully admitting defeat!!" Characters In order of appearance: *Tomoko Kuroki *Yoshinori Kiyota *Kiyota’s friends *Alice (Shinjuku's Number One Hostess) *Tomoki Kuroki *Akane Okada (unnamed) *Mrs. Kuroki (on the phone) Referbacks *Tomoko’s purple toy from Chapter 26 appears again. Trivia *Kiyota's first name is revealed. *Tomoko was aware of Kiyota's name. *Tomoko’s father is a smoker. *According to Tomoko’s own accounts, she started having trouble talking to people after 4th grade. Cultural References *Tomoko goes to Kabukichō, which is an entertainment and red-light district in Shinjuku, Tōkyō, Japan. *Hostess Clubs Memorial Moments *Tomoko has a moment of introspection where she tries to figure out why she has a problem rather than her usual defensive blaming others. *Tomoko faces the fact that her imagination does not meet reality, and she accepts trying to be "a bit more of a normal person." Quotes *"Since when has it been so hard for me to talk to people?" – Tomoko *"If I started working at a cabaret club, then maybe I could get good at talking to people to!!" – Tomoko *"There's not a single freshman who's as badass as I am!" – Tomoko *“Instead, I'll get to fulfill every desire in the world that appears after night falls. It's a true world. Forbidden things? Doing that is praiseworthy.” – Tomoko Gallery Tomoko_Has_a_Sad.png|Tomoko reflects on her social anxiety. Hostess_Tomoko.png|Student by day . . . Hostess by night! Navigation Category:WataMote Chapters Category:Volume 4